Loss

Hmm. Seems excessive, but we'll see.

Chavo Guerrero vs Kengo Kimura (NJPW 11/03/80) I thought this was much better than their previous match. Very good match, hard hitting with a fast pace and some nice athletic stuff from both guys, especially Chavo. Chavo's rolling sentons are awesome. Kimura isn't at Fujinami's level, but he's still excellent. I could do without the screwy finish, but it's the 80s.

Carlos Plata & El Doberman vs Mighty Inoue & Mach Hayato (IWE 11/01/80) Really cool match, even if Mach Hayato was crazy sloppy and completely blew a series of moves he tried. I still enjoyed this, they mostly rebounded and I'm glad I saw it, but parts of it were ugly.

Greg Gagne & Super Destroyer Mark II vs Nick Bockwinkel & Bobby Heenan (AWA 10/03/80) Based on pre-match protests from Bockwinkel and Heenan, Bobby's weasel suit will NOT be on the line in this match. Bobby was a hell of a worker and the crowd popped so much every time the babyface team got any offense at all on the guy. He takes nice bumps and moves around the ring really well. I thought this went a little long for the type of match it was which was evident in the heat slowly declining throughout the match, but they worked the tag formula really well. That said, this match really didn't need a double heat. After the match, Heenan and Bockwinkel try putting the weasel suit on Greg Gagne until Super Destroyer makes the save with a loaded mask. This knocks Heenan out and gives the fans what they wanted all along - the guy in the weasel suit.

Bob Backlund vs Stan Hansen (NJPW 09/30/80) Backlund's zany mat stuff gets over great in Japan and I really enjoyed this match. A lot of these spots are regular Backlund specials, but seeing him do the power lift with a guy the size of Stan Hansen and put him on the top rope is especially impressive. When he slaps him after setting him on the top rope, it's even better. While I've really liked some of the Hansen/Inoki matches, it was cool to see Hansen face a different opponent and thus produce a very different type of match -- one with a faster pace and believe it or not, an opponent with a more dynamic and engaging personality.

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Ron Starr (NJPW 09/30/80) Fujinami was good here, but I didn't think Ron Starr was all that good, so I didn't get into it that much unless Fujinami was the one on offense. I think I'd like Starr more in his natural habitat, as i just don't think he's cut out for Japanese wrestling.

Why? When I rewatched the best Blonds matches for the 1993 Yearbook, I thought they were really good.

Chavo Guerrero vs Kengo Kimura (NJPW 09/30/80) Kimura was a capable wrestler, and I'm glad I saw this match because Fujinami looks to be the best guy in the world in 1980 from the footage I am watching. Not that Chavo is a "lesser" guy, but I wanted to see how he'd hold up against someone else. He looked good. I didn't care for this match much, especially the cheap finish. It was an interesting glimpse into two guys that I like, but for whatever reason, it didn't all add up.

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Kengo Kimura (NJPW 09/25/80) Awesome mat clinic with some incredible drama at the end. I appreciated that they managed to keep a 25 minute match that was worked entirely on the mat pretty compelling, and also that they kept this as "pure" as possible. This really had the feel of an actual sporting contest more than any match I've seen so far in 1980. I don't think it's something for everyone simply because of the almost complete lack of highspots for most of this but I thought it was cool that we could watch them struggle, hear them breathe and see them sweat. So much intensity that teases boiling over a few times, but never really does until the last few minutes when the match is off the charts. The countout false finish was really terrific because I was so ready to complain that a match this great really needs a pinfall finish. The draw we got - while not ideal - is preferable to that. You could argue that this was the genesis of the perfunctory aspects of the juniors style - lots of early matwork followed by a hot finishing stretch - and you wouldn't be incorrect. But this doesn't feel like a routine formula at all. A great tribute to the pro wrestling art form, in the top five matches of the year at this point, and something that should be talked about as an all-time great New Japan juniors match.

They were split up because of the low rating for Flair/Arn vs Blondes at the Clash. Dusty's takeaway from that was that Austin and Pillman didn't mean anything as a tag team. So he broke them up and it's been spun as a burial over the years, but Dusty was actually doing it because he saw singles potential in Austin.

I know there was the pre-match video package, but did Gorilla or Jesse even mention Steamboat's injury during the match? I'm trying to remember.

Garvin would have been great for sure. Curious how his heel run would look.

Here's what I never understand. If Daniel Bryan is not a viable option above Mayweather or The Rock, why even have him as an option on the poll? If it's such a horrible choice, don't even make him an option to choose. It makes no sense.

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Tony Londos (NJPW 09/19/80) Very cool to watch Fujinami take on all comers in so many different styles. This is again unique to the other matches in how much snap there is in the execution of everything and how stiff all of the shots are. Awesome little sprint. More of a Nitro special by the standards of New Japan matches at the time, but a nice change of pace all the same.

A friend of mine sent this to me because he was curious about my thoughts on it. This is laugh-out-loud funny in so many ways: The fanatical fantasies of pro wrestling fans The article linked is also really funny: WWE Fandom: Developing Academic and Life Skills Through Creative Production There is also apparently a web site called The Dirt Sheets.

Antonio Inoki vs Stan Hansen (NJPW 09/11/80) This match again. I guess I'm glad because Hansen vs Inoki and Hansen vs Baba will be interesting comparisons as the decade progresses. I thought I had fatigue on this matchup, but this was really good and different enough from the previous two matches that I still enjoyed it. This had a hot start and then some really cool holds from both guys on the mat. Inoki looked really good in this one, and doing the bridge up spot with Hansen is really impressive because of Hansen's size. They also drop bombs almost as high-end as Race and Baba did, but with a better build to each spot and better stuff in between the big moves. I popped for the Argentine backbreaker - Hansen never quite gets the hold locked in, but stubbornly tries a few times.

Tatsumi Fujinami vs Tony Rocco (NJPW 09/11/80) I've never seen or heard of Tony Rocco, but he's a really fun powerhouse wrestler who can rip up the mat. This was different from any of the other Fujinami matches so far this year, which is a credit to both of them. Fujinami really did have incredible versatility at this point, and the juniors division was showcasing so many different styles. All the struggle from Rocco to execute the Russian legsweep was cool and it was the first time I've ever seen that move as anything more than a transitional spot. The spot where Rocco bumped upside down into the ringpost, got his ankle stuck and Fujinami freed him with a dropkick was pretty awesome too. They really have a great finishing stretch of nearfalls as well. With the other juniors matches in 1980, I can form a direct relationship to the 90s stuff, or at least see how Fujinami's matches served as a template to the future. But Liger never had an opponent quite like this so this stands out from the pack. Great match -- probably my #2 for the year right now.

Giant Baba vs Harley Race (AJPW 09/09/80) Now THIS was the type of bombfest that is cool to watch if we're going to see these two do one. More crowd heat, more fury with Race pissed off over losing the title and more urgency. Baba's neckbreaker looks great, as do Race's wide assortment of moves and big bumps. This feels more like an exciting TV match than an NWA World Title change, but it's still a very good match.

Harley Race vs Giant Baba (AJPW 09/04/80) This had its moments. There were more "moves" in this one than a lot of wrestling during this time but there wasn't really anything pulling it all together beyond that. Just "my turn, your turn" wrestling. This just felt like a bunch of stuff happening that was all sold pretty much the same way. It was cool to see some big offense from Giant Baba, though.

Bill Dundee vs Tommy Rich (Memphis 08/23/80) Somebody say sumthin' about Wildfire! Really cool fired up mat-based match between these two. I could have been tricked into thinking this was in a full arena based on how much heat there is for this one too. I like how they put the Southern title over as something so important based on these guys just fighting so hard for a shot at it. Rich locks in a nasty looking armbar which Dundee sells like death a little over 10 minutes in. Dundee is the victim of an accidental groin shot and Rich decides to capitalize and takes the win. I loved this! Rich turns heel with his post-match interview, going over the top by calling out the still-injured Jerry Lawler who was doing commentary on this with Lance Russell. He claims when Lawler was around, Rich never got any title shots but those days are over. He ends up shoving Lawler to the floor for good measure. Good stuff and great overall presentation.

Mighty Inoue & Higo Hamaguchi vs Spike Huber & Rocky Brewer (IWE 07/25/80) Cage match! I thought this was awesome from the opening bell. Nice slow build for a match that felt like a true main event. They took their time building to the cage being used as a weapon and Inoue took a hell of a beating from two great heels. Huber and Brewer work really stiff and vicious, and Inoue does some great selling and staggered bumping to put over the attack, building huge sympathy along the way. Hamaguchi finally gets a hot tag and looks terrific, but he's overmatched quickly by these guys who just refuse to be deterred at all. I'd love to see a series of tag matches between these teams as I thought they matched up exceptionally well and this was a phenomenal match. The aggression was just off the charts from Huber and Brewer and they payoff the long attack in the final few minutes really well with all the cut biting, great visuals and big heel bumps. Inoue and Hamaguchi are a super babyface team. My match of the year right now and a true classic. Everyone should check this out. I wish I had seen this before the cage matches podcast.

That's actually a fantastic point in Bret's favor I've never thought of before. Also, while I'm not a huge fan of the match, he had the Ironman with Owen which is pretty well regarded and the Kid title defense from RAW within a few days of each other too. So Bret probably does have stretches like that too. Great wrestler.

It would have made such a difference for one of the announcers to say "You know, The Dragon's temper has gotten the best of him a few times over recent months and it has cost him, but I don't think that's going to happen tonight. Look at him. He looks like a man poised and ready to take the Intercontinental title from the Macho Man."

For a long time, I thought it wasn't wrestled in the context of the storyline so I can see someone not liking it. I do like it now though. The Toronto house show match in February - where I saw Steamboat show the hatred you'd expect him to have after getting his larynx crushed, only for his temper to cost him - was the missing piece that made me appreciate WM more. WM3 doesn't look as good if you think the storyline is Steamboat getting his hands on Savage for the first time since the injury. But yes, this is a good choice.

There is no such thing as a universally enjoyable match, which is a good thing. If they did exist, how boring would this board be?